Chapter Three
Milo
In an attempt to get away from Alfie’s and Darcy’s comments about my new lack of hair, I’d decided to be helpful and take some ice cream around to Rupert.
We were starting to clear out the kitchen freezer anyway, and I figured this was as good a time as any to be neighbourly.
I didn’t think Rupert had popped into the shop all summer, and it would be a crime for us to close for the winter without him trying anything.
Besides, after that morning, I wanted to see him again. And taking him some ice cream was the perfect excuse.
“What is it?” Rupert asked as I put the tubs down on the counter.
They were both white, with handwritten labels on and a Lick It!
sticker on the lid. We didn’t sell tubs normally, mostly only using them for samples and taste tests so we hadn’t bothered to get anything branded, but it was something I was going to suggest we looked at properly next year.
A lot of our customers has asked if they could take ice cream home with them, and I thought it would be an easy add-on to offer.
We’d have to make sure we made bigger batches of ice cream, and find some way to display them, but I’d leave that up to Darcy and Alfie. They were the ones who figured out how to make things work, I was just the salesman.
“Ice cream,” I said cheerfully. “We’re starting to clear out the freezers and I figured, since you haven’t tried any, you should have some.
I wasn’t sure what flavours you’d like, so I thought I’d start with some of my favourites.
We’ve got strawberries and cream, and cinder toffee.
” I pointed to the respective tubs. “Owen’s started making a banoffee too, which is fucking amazing, but there’s only a bit of that left and I’m selfishly keeping it for myself. ”
I grinned at Rupert, whose expression was half-pinched, half-smile. Like he was trying to be happy but was also desperately worried about something.
Shit. Did he not like ice cream? I thought everyone loved ice cream.
“That’s very kind of you, thank you,” he said, resting his hand on the counter. “I, er, I appreciate it.”
There was definitely a “but” there. I didn’t know if he’d say it though.
“It’s fine if you don’t want it,” I said quickly. “You can say. I won’t be upset.”
“Oh, no, I do. It’s very sweet of you.”
“Then why—”
“Not to interrupt this charming conversation,” said the older man in the plum waistcoat who’d been watching me suspiciously since I came in. “But where do you expect us to put those? Because if you hadn’t noticed, we’re a sweet shop and therefore drastically short on freezer space.”
Ah bollocks. How the fuck had I not thought of that? Of course he wasn’t going to randomly have a freezer in the back of the shop.
“Norman,” Rupert hissed with a pained look, glancing back at me with wide eyes. “I’m so sorry! I don’t want you to think I’m not grateful. It’s so kind of you to bring us some, and it sounds delicious, but—”
“But I’m a fucking idiot who didn’t think that you wouldn’t have a freezer.
” I grinned at him, trying to ignore the uncomfortable stabbing in my chest. I didn’t know why it hurt to be told I’d fucked up, but it did.
It was a painful reminder of the fact that, once again, I hadn’t thought something through, and I’d inconvenienced people with my carelessness.
“Shit, I’m such a twat,” I continued, chuckling self-deprecatingly in the hope it would make me feel better. It didn’t. “I’m sorry. Fuck, you must think I’m a complete wanker.”
“Only a little bit,” Rupert said. A little smile brushed his lips, one that finally extended to his eyes. For some reason, seeing it made my chest settle. “I do appreciate you thinking of me.”
“You’re welcome. Why don’t I label it, and you can swing by after you close and grab it?”
“What if you’re not there? I mean, er, are you going to be there all day?”
“Yeah, we’re still open for another month.” And if Rupert still hadn’t dropped by after we’d closed, I’d wait. Although Darcy would probably find me something to do while I waited.
It better not be deep cleaning the kitchen chiller and freezer though. That was his and Owen’s job, and if they were going to piss off to Australia for Christmas and leave us in the rain and snow, then they could bloody do it.
“Oh, okay. Well, I guess, I’ll stop by.”
“Looking forward to it already.” I picked up the tubs and headed back towards the door.
It would be annoying to explain to everyone why I was back with the same tubs, but it was worth it to know Rupert would be stopping by later.
That felt like another win, and if I wasn’t careful, it would go to my head.
Ah fuck it, what did it matter if it did? A little ego was good for the soul. Besides, without it, Rupert wouldn’t be coming to see me.
All I had to do now was make sure I didn’t scare him away.
“Which tubs have you got there?” I asked as I looked up to see Alfie with two in his hands. They looked suspiciously like Rupert’s, which I supposed wasn’t hard when all the tubs were the same. Even so I had to check.
It was much later in the afternoon, and we were closing up for the day.
Rupert still hadn’t come by, and there was an antsy, itchy feeling under my skin I couldn’t shake.
I was driving Alfie mad with my pacing, dancing, and incessant chatter—the pressed line of his lips telling me he was two minutes away from telling me to sod off.
Which he wouldn’t because Alfie was a good boy. Mostly.
“I’ve got mine and Jonathan’s,” he said, with a heavy hint of fond exasperation. He tilted the tubs so I could see his writing on the lids. “See. Mine, not yours.”
“I was just checking!”
“I know, but I promise, I won’t take yours.”
“Thank you.” I stretched, let out a huffed hum of boredom, and drummed my fingers on the counter. I didn’t even know what time Rupert closed, but I hoped it was soon. I’d always hated waiting and today had felt like I was trapped in eternal doctor’s waiting room.
“You know, if you’re bored you could start deep cleaning the freezers,” Alfie said, gesturing at the two display freezers I was leaning against. “They need doing.”
I groaned dramatically. “But that’s so boring! I don’t wanna.”
“I know, but you could be nice and do it anyway.”
“Or I could wait here and not do that.”
“You could,” Alfie said. “But it still needs doing. If it doesn’t get done today, we’ll have to do it tomorrow.”
“Fine, I’ll make a start. We’re not going to need two for October.
Our footfall has already dropped enough that I think we can pretty much shut one down until March.
” I could switch it off and clean it out, the same as we did every week.
It wouldn’t actually take long. But my brain had decided it would be boring and tedious and was screaming at me like a toddler having a meltdown, and even though I’d said to Alfie I’d do it, I wasn’t convinced I would.
“That’s what I was thinking.” He smiled at me. It seemed like he wanted to say something else, but we were interrupted by Darcy appearing through the kitchen door with a sweet look on his face that belied the deviousness in his voice.
“Milo, Rupert is at the back door for you. He’s here for his ice cream.”
“Cheers,” I said as I straightened and opened the little freezer under the counter behind me. His tubs were right there where I’d left them.
“Do you want me to tell him to come in?”
“No, I’ll go out to him.”
“You can invite him in. It’s still raining.”
“Nope, because then you fuckers will spy on us.” I walked through to the kitchen and shot a pointed look at Owen, who was unloading the dishwasher. “Make sure your boyfriend doesn’t follow me, please. I don’t need a parent.”
Owen laughed. “Will do.”
He was just as bad as Darcy, so there was a good chance he’d be listening on the other side of the door too, but I could live in hope.
Rupert was waiting a few steps away from the door, lingering like he wasn’t sure if he should be here or not.
He had his coat and hat on, one hand tucked into his pocket, the other holding his open, yellow umbrella, and a bag slung over his shoulder.
He looked up as the door squeaked open, and I noticed he was playing with his bottom lip, pulling it nervously between his teeth.
His lips were fuller than I’d remembered.
Or maybe I’d never really noticed them before.
They were a soft rosy brown, and there was a tiny mole in one corner, just under his bottom lip.
My fingers ached with the need to touch it.
For no other reason than it was there and I wanted to.
His skin was a warm brown with a cool, pink flush across his cheeks, and a scattering of freckles across his nose under the bridge of his glasses.
The two of us looked at each other in silence for a long moment. It was unusual for me because the last word anyone would ever use to describe me was quiet.
“I’ve got your ice cream,” I said slowly, holding the tubs up so he could see them. Filling the silence almost felt awkward, but I had to say something. We couldn’t go on staring at each other all night.
“Thank you. And thank you for storing it today. I’m sorry I couldn’t take it earlier. And I’m so sorry Norman was rude about it.”
“It’s fine. You don’t need to apologise. Norman had a point.”
“I… well… if you’re sure?”
“I am.” I stepped down off the back step, the light drizzle immediately making me regret my decision not to grab my hat. And shave my hair off. “Here you go.”
“Thanks,” he said as he took them carefully, having to tuck his umbrella into the crook of his arm to take both. I didn’t know whether to offer help or not. Would that be overstepping?
Instead, I said. “You’ll have to let me know what you think.”
“Oh, yes. Of course. I’m sure they’ll be delicious.”
“I mean, yeah, they’re the tits. But I still wanna know what you think.”
He nodded slowly. “I’ll let you know.”
Another moment of silence, which I deliberately snapped because I was desperate to find a way to keep this conversation going.
I didn’t know why I wanted to. It wasn’t like we were friends.
More like vaguely friendly acquaintances.
But I was still fascinated by him, and now our animosity had started to cool, I was determined to find out more about him.
I knew I couldn’t force him to be my friend. But I could try.
It was how I’d made most of my friends. I’d met Darcy and Alfie in primary school when we’d all been playing in the little house-shop-thing in the corner of our reception classroom, and I’d decided then and there they were my friends. And that was it.
“Any nice plans for this evening?” I asked.
“Not really. I have to feed Lizzie. I mean, that’s not a bad thing, as long as she’s not feeling picky.
But I suppose it’s not really a nice plan.
Or special.” He must have seen my utter bewilderment because he continued quickly.
“Lizzie is my royal python. A butter royal python, if you want to be specific.”
“You have a snake?”
“Y-Yes.”
“That’s so cool!” I stared at Rupert, shock and awe swirling through me. How did someone as uptight and fussy as him own something as cool as a snake? “Do you have pics?”
“Oh… yes. Hang on.” He opened his bag and put the two tubs inside, the top flap flopping slightly where it didn’t quite close. Then he pulled his phone out of his pocket and opened the screen, tapping it a few times and scrolling until he turned it around. “Here she is.”
“Fuck, she’s so cute!” She was too. Her scales were a soft caramel on top that faded to almost cream on her belly, with large butter-coloured splotches all across her body, round, dark eyes, and the cutest little snub nose.
It was hard to tell how big she was from the way she was wrapped around Rupert’s arm, but she didn’t look huge.
A cuddly sort of size. If that was even a thing with snakes.
“Look at her little face! Oh, I just wanna kiss her little nose.”
Rupert chuckled, the sound warming my stomach. “She will let me do that sometimes. Mostly when she’s sleeping around my neck. And thank you, I think she’s gorgeous but not everyone agrees.”
“Well everyone else is wrong. How could you not love that face?” A million questions burst into my head, each of them fighting to be the first out of my mouth. “How long have you had her?”
“Nearly six years. I got her when she was six months old. She’s… is it weird to say she’s my best friend? I suppose it is.”
“No! People say that about their cats and dogs. Snakes can be your best friend too.”
“She is a good listener,” he said quietly. “And she doesn’t judge. Not really.”
“Sounds like a best friend to me.”
“Would you… would you like to meet her? Not today, um, it would have to be in a few days. Once she’s eaten, she needs about two or three days without being handled to make sure she digests properly. She can be a bit of a picky eater, so it’s very important she keeps down the meals she does eat.”
That gave me a million more questions to ask, but all of them faded into insignificance by the question Rupert had asked me. “I’d love that!”
“Really?”
“Yes!”
Rupert’s smile was so bright and pretty it reminded me of Christmas lights. “Amazing. Okay. How about next week then? Perhaps after work one day?”
“Sounds great. I literally have nothing on so let me know what works best for you.”
“How about Thursday?” he asked tentatively. “Would that work? Or if not, we could do—”
“Thursday sounds great.” I snagged my phone out of my jeans pocket to put it in my calendar with a reminder alarm. Otherwise I’d totally forget and then it would be awkward as fuck. And I didn’t want to give Rupert a reason to be upset with me. I’d never get to meet Lizzie then.
Lizzie.
A bit of a strange name for a snake, but I wasn’t going to say that. Besides it wasn’t really any stranger than Fred, the vicar, calling her dog Angus.
“Good, good. Cool. Amazing,” Rupert said, the words pouring out softly under his breath. “I’ll see you next week then.”
“You will. But you’ll also see me tomorrow.”
I smiled at him, waiting for him to return it.
And when he did, it felt like my insides were burning.